Remains of 4 leaders identified at early English settlement of Jamestown
By Associated Press, adapted by Newsela staff
08.06.15
WASHINGTON — Archaeologists have discovered the human remains of four of the earliest leaders
of the English colony that would become America. They were buried for more than 400 years near the
altar of what was America's first Protestant church in Jamestown, Virginia.
The four burial sites were uncovered in the earthen floor of what was Jamestown's historic Anglican
church from 1608, a team of scientists and historians announced July 28. The church is where
Pocahontas, the daughter of a Native American chief, married Englishman John Rolfe. Their marriage
led to peace between the Powhatan Indians and colonists at the first permanent English settlement in
America.
Beyond the human remains, archaeologists also found artifacts buried with the colonial leaders. One
of them was a mysterious Catholic container for holy relics or objects.
"Nothing Like It Anywhere Else"
The Jamestown Rediscovery archaeology team revealed its discovery at the Smithsonian's National
Museum of Natural History. The museum is helping to study and identify those buried in the church.
The burials were first uncovered in November 2013, but the scientific team wanted to trace and
identify its findings with some certainty before announcing the discovery.
Archaeologists have been studying the site since 1994 when the original James Fort was
rediscovered.
The team identified the remains of the Reverend Robert Hunt, Jamestown's first Anglican minister
who was known as a peacemaker between rival leaders. Also identified were Captain Gabriel Archer,
an enemy of one-time colony leader John Smith; Sir Ferdinando Wainman, likely the first knight
buried in America; and Captain William West, who died in a fight with the Powhatan Indians. The
three other men likely died after brief illnesses, and were buried between 1608 and 1610.
"What we have discovered here in the earliest English church in America are four of the first leaders
of America," said historian James Horn, president of the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation.
"There's nothing like it anywhere else in this country."
Perhaps just as interesting as the newly discovered human remains are some of the artifacts buried
with the bodies. Burial items were rare in English culture at the time, archaeologists said.
A Small Silver Box With Bones
In Archer's coffin, archaeologists found a captain's staff as a symbol of his military position. Historical
records indicate Archer helped lead some of the earliest expeditions to Jamestown. He died at the
age of 34 during a six-month period known as the "starving time" when many died due to disease,
starvation and battles with Indians.
Mysteriously, a small silver box resting atop Archer's coffin turns out likely to be a Catholic reliquary
— a container for holy relics. Inside were bone fragments and a receptacle for holy water. Archer's
parents were Catholic, which became illegal in Protestant England. So the discovery raises the
question of whether Archer was part of a secret Catholic cell — or even a Catholic spy on behalf of
the Spanish, Horn said. Catholic Spain was the enemy of England at the time.
Catholic relics have been found in the Jamestown archaeological site before, but the placement of
this box seems particularly symbolic, the historians said. They used CT imaging scans to see inside
the sealed box without damaging it, something that wouldn't have been possible 10 years ago.
An alternative theory holds that the religious container was simply used for the Protestant church.
Historians said more research must be done.
"It was a real kind of ah-ha moment for a lot of us," said William Kelso, Jamestown's director of
archaeology. "It was oh, religion was a big deal here, and that's often overlooked. Everyone thinks
that people came to Jamestown to find gold and go home and live happily ever after."
Searching For An Early Governor
In West's burial plot, archaeologists found remnants of the military leader's silver-edged sash in a
block of soil. The silk material was too delicate to remove from the dirt, so archaeologists removed an
entire block of dirt.
Archaeologists will continue searching the church site and expect to eventually find the burial of Sir
Thomas West, the early governor of Virginia. He led a rescue mission to save Jamestown when the
colony was collapsing, Horn said. The Delaware colony was named after West, who was also known
as Lord De La Warr.
Artifacts from the burials will go on display within weeks at the site known as "Historic Jamestowne."
The site also plans to memorialize the men and will keep their bones in an accessible place for
preservation and future study.
The Smithsonian created a 3-D scan of the excavation site, bones and artifacts to give people a look
at the discovery online.
The team is more than 90 percent certain of the colonists' identities, Kelso said. Still, they will work to
complete more testing and potentially DNA analysis.
The archaeology team said the discovery is a riddle they must figure out over time.
"The things that we look at and can read from the bones are simply details that you're not going to
find in the history books," said Douglas Owsley, an anthropologist at the Smithsonian who studies
ancient bones. "These are men that you might not know their name. But these are men that were
critical to who we are in terms of America today."